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Interview: Daniel Valfré, Open Source in Latin America

By Dawn M. Foster (91 posts) on November 23, 2009 at 11:06 am

Daniel Valfré has been involved with open source since 1997, actively participating in the local Linux User Group in Córdoba, Argentina from its creation in 1999, working on a local NGO on different projects involving philosophy and technical promotion of open source, and also teaching courses about operating systems and programming, all with a strong focus on spreading knowledge about open source technology and philosophy.

Dawn: What do you like about working on open source projects at Intel?

Daniel: The level of impact one has. Mentioning Intel here opens doors and raises eyebrows. Of course this raises the bar, but it is always an interesting challenge to find out how Intel and the open source ecosystem can work together.

Also, I like the way Intel participates in open source with regard to having its hardware work with Linux while engaging the community in it.

Dawn: You are planning a Moblin Day Roadshow in December. Can you tell us more about it?

Daniel: Oh, sure. Moblin is the fine tuned open source stack for Intel Atom processor-based computers, and we found that awareness in the Latin American region is low with ISVs, OEMs, and the community at large.

With that motivation, and building up from a similar event held in Brazil in February 2009, we will be holding the roadshow the 10th of December in the "Buenos Aires Auditorium" at Buenos Aires, Argentina. It will cover topics from Moblin-based technologies to the Atom Development Program, as well as having guest speakers on board from major OSVs. Wishfully thinking, the event will allow us to measure impact towards having a yearly edition. You can register for the Moblin Day Roadshow if you would like to attend.

Dawn: What are some of the things that make open source work in the Latin American region unique when compared to other geographic areas?

Daniel: Well, for one open source in this region has a more political / philosophical component that in other regions. This has to be taken into account when one approaches the community so that our efforts are perceived as what they truly are, which is contributing to have a strong and healthy ecosystem.

Having said this, there are a large number of developers and small companies which have not yet reached their full potential in developing a business around their open source products or their contributions to open source projects. By having a presence in the region, and particularly a software development center in Córdoba, Argentina, we can take on the challenge of addressing those companies and work together.

Dawn: What do you do for fun when you aren't at work?

Daniel: Try to get away from computers? Seriously, Córdoba City is near a mountain region and is always an open opportunity to get in touch with nature there. And lately I'm working on making my 1-year old nephew believe he has a cool uncle. :-)

Categories: Mobility, Open Source
Tags: argentina, latin america, moblin, Open Source

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Comments (1)

December 11, 2009 4:46 AM PST Roberto

The event was great. I attended and was very well organized. The talks and the information provided was very cool and I had already started to looking at moblin as a new base/os for new mobile applications. People would become more interested and attracted to the platform once it reaches commons users.

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